Pope Francis appealed on Sunday (August 25) for freedom of worship in Ukraine, asking that "no Christian church be abolished directly or indirectly."

Ukrainian lawmakers on Tuesday (August 20) passed a law envisaging a ban on the activities of a Russia-linked branch of the Orthodox church, paving the way for a historic rupture with an institution that Kyiv has accused of complicity in Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

“If someone commits evil against their people, they will be guilty of it, but they cannot have committed evil because they prayed,” the pontiff said during his weekly Angelus prayer, adding that "Churches are not to be touched."

The pope also prayed for those affected by mpox, "which is now a global health emergency," calling on "governments and private industries to share the technology and treatments available."

READ: Ukrainian army 'moving further' into Russia, Zelensky says

(Production: Yesim Dikmen, Matteo Negri)